Synthetic oleanane triterpenoids (SO) are a novel class of therapeutic compounds based on the structure of oleanolic acid. These synthetic oleanane triterpenoids which include 2-cyano-3,12-dioxooleana-1,9(11)-dien-28-oic acid (CDDO), CDDO-methyl...

The circadian clock of the filamentous fungus, Neurospora crassa, consists of a frequency-white-collar ( frq-wc ) based and transcription-translation-derived oscillator. Negative feedback regulation is essential for the oscillatory process, in...

Apoptosis is induced by chemicals and death receptor activation. Although the stimuli are different, common proteins are activated downstream. The Bcl-2 family of proteins plays an important role in mediating apoptotic signaling at the mitochondria...

In order to preserve a balance between the requirement for iron and its toxicity, plants likely maintain tight control over iron homeostasis. We are interested in identifying factors involved in the regulation of iron uptake and have examined this...

Most solid tumors are aneuploid, and many tumor cells persistently mis-segregate whole chromosomes at an elevated rate in a process called chromosomal instability (CIN). CIN occurs due to loss of chromosome segregation fidelity during mitosis,...

The efficacy of many chemotherapeutic agents can be attenuated by expression of the anti-apoptotic proteins Bcl-2, Bcl-X and Mcl-1. When ML-1 leukemia cells are incubated with vinblastine, they rapidly upregulate Mcl-1. Suppression of Mcl-1 with...

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) homeostasis requires the coordination of anabolic and catabolic activities. A primary function of the ER is the biosynthesis and export of secretory proteins and lipids. Anterograde transport of only properly folded and...

Accurate chromosome segregation in human oocytes requires that meiotic sister chromatid cohesion remain intact for decades and work in model organisms indicates that deterioration of meiotic cohesion over time may be a major determinant of...

Leukemia represents a small percentage of human cancer, accounting for about 5% of all cases of cancer in adults, but, interestingly, for about 50% of all cases of cancer in children. The behavior of leukemia is often regulated by the chromosomal...

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a virulent opportunistic pathogen that is frequently cultured from infectious sites, and is estimated to cause ~12% of nosocomial infections worldwide [1]. P. aeruginosa infections occur in a majority of adults with the...

During an immune reaction to an invading pathogen, a population of lymphocytes with receptors that specifically recognize the pathogen are activated and become memory cells. Characteristically, memory lymphocytes persist for long periods of time...

Herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) establishes lifelong latent infections in the sensory neurons of the trigeminal ganglia (TG) wherein it retains the capacity to reactivate. The interferon (IFN)-driven antiviral response is critical for the control of...

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) balance self-renewal with the continuous production of the suitable numbers of lineage-restricted progenitor cells. In this work we demonstrate that the Mixed lineage leukemia 1 (Mll1) gene is essential for this...

Intracellular transport between the ER and Golgi is mediated by vesicles that bud from donor membranes and then fuse with acceptor membranes. Bi-directional vesicle transport maintains distinct organelle composition through a process known as...

Upon activation by binding of insulin, the insulin receptor tyrosine kinase phosphorylates a group of proteins known as the insulin receptor substrates (IRS's). The tyrosine phosphorylated IRS's then act as docking/effector molecules for SH2...

The cellular mechanisms of degradation of a transmembrane protein, the acetylcholine receptor (AChR), have been examined in a mouse muscle cell line, BC3H-1. The half-time of degradation of cell surface receptors labeled with...

In a search for target genes for all-trans retinoic acid (RA) treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), G0/G1 switch gene 2 (G0S2) was found to be one of the most prominently and rapidly induced species. G0S2 is a small, basic protein with...

The demand for novel molecularly targeted drugs will continue to rise as we make progress toward personalizing cancer treatments to the molecular signatures of individual tumors. While the collection and analysis of genomic data has become routine,...